


Yaz and Thirteen (Thasmin): Jack Harkness Nudges Them Together

by Dreamer_of_Improbable_Dreams (Dreamer_of_Impossible_Dreams)



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/F, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Gay, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 03:11:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17113346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamer_of_Impossible_Dreams/pseuds/Dreamer_of_Improbable_Dreams
Summary: Slow burn. Thirteen gets relationship advice from the only other living creature who knows what it's like to live for thousands of years. Yaz and the Doctor have their DTR and first kiss/makeout.





	1. Bumping Into Jack

"The signal's coming from planet Yaibrab2307 in the Corz Galaxy. Haven't been there in awhile," said the Doctor.

"Better check it out, eh Doc?" quipped Graham.

The Doctor grins and nods--madly punching buttons, whirling doodads, and pulling levers. The TARDIS whirls to life and off they go.  
________________

Yaz, Ryan, and Graham stand ready at the TARDIS door. As soon as the ship is steady, they open the door and step out, with the Doctor not far behind. 

"The planet's gorgeous," said Yaz. "A real stunner with all the mountains and snow. But freezing cold. Should we get some coats and boots from the TARDIS wardrobe, Doctor?"

"Nah, won't be here but a pinch," replied the Doctor, amused by Yaz always being chilly. "Besides, planets like this usually have heat bubbles and underground warming zones. See how the path over there doesn't have snow on it? Let's head that way."

The gang crunched through a foot of snow, with Graham crying out, "Aw, Doc, I've got snow on me socks. Got a spare sandwich in my pocket, but no spare socks."

Ryan shook his head and swatted him, "Buck up, Gramps."

Yaz glanced at the Doctor, the two sharing a knowing look about the banter between the blokes. 

"Right, then, come on Yaz," the Doctor took her arm and led her toward the path. Soon all four of them trapsed along five minutes or thereabouts, when Ryan pointed to a lush green area with stairs leading up to an outdoor seating area. 

"Brilliant! We've found a place with a heat bubble!" said the Doctor.

"What's a heat bubble?" asked Ryan.

The Doctor replied, "A heat bubble's put in place over areas where people want to be outdoors to enjoy the scenery, but where it's too cold to stay outdoors too long. You all would freeze if you stayed out here too long. I'd freeze too, come to think of it, but then I'd probably regenerate. And then freeze again, if I lose my mind like I sometimes do when I regenerate and forget to go to the heat bubble. I'd be a wreck. Let's not freeze."

"Good plan," said Yaz wryly. The Doctor liked when Yaz got sarcastic. "She's such a rock, that Yaz," thought the Doctor. "Never one for drama."

The four stepped into the heat bubble and walked up the stairs. Two creatures with an orange hue greeted them mid-way up the staircase, asking them to have some form of ID ready at the bar. 

"Wait, this is a random bar?" said Ryan.

"Kind of a posh one, by the look of it," said the Doctor. "Hope we're not underdressed. But then, they probably aren't too familiar with your species--or mine for that matter. The Fifth Human Empire hasn't yet spread out this far, so as far as they know we're dressed to the nines. Act fancy."

The view at the top took away their collective breath. A completely open-air bar, warm and surrounded with grasses and plants, looked over a valley of snowy mountains and ice waterfalls. Seating surrounded the edges, while a large rectangular bar area took up much of the center. It was comfortable, thought Yaz, even if still a bit on the chilly side. She wished she had her leather jacket on.

The Doctor looked around, buzzing her sonic, trying to figure out if she could get a lock on the mysterious signal.

Suddenly, a man who looked human stood up and walked quickly toward the Doctor. "Is that you?" asked the man. "Could it possibly be? Doctor? The last time I saw you, you were sporting white Converse trainers and a cute ass."

The Doctor turned and smiled her widest, wildest, happy grin. "Jack Harkness, look at you. You don't look a day over 30." Jack grabbed her in a tight hug, picking her up and spinning her around. "Ahhhhhh! It's so good to see you!," he practically shouted. "How many bodies has it been since I last saw you?"

"Let's see here," said the Doctor, bobbing her head back and forth like she was clicking back through hundreds of calendars. "Two! I was a young, dapper Prince Philip look-alike for a few hundred years, and then I was a grumpy white-haired Scotsman. Quite like the upgrade, if I do say so myself."

"Me too," flirted Jack, winking at her, and then winking at Ryan as he smirked behind the Doctor's back. Jack continued, "I see you have some new friends. Who's the handsome young lad?"

The Doctor rolled her eyes at Jack and replied, "Jack, this is Ryan, Graham ... and Yaz." Her eyes lingered on Yaz a touch longer than they did the others, and Jack noticed. The Doctor continued, "But Jack, mind yourself around Ryan. He's new, and I can't have you trying to pick up all my friends. They won't want to hang around me anymore. That is, unless you like the flirting, Ryan. In which case, know that Jack is generally upstanding. But occassionally not."

Ryan shook his head, "Not interested in men, I've told you before, Doc. I like girls."

"Fine, fine," said the Doctor. "Better in this case, anyway. Jack is an old friend. A time-traveler who ran Torchwood--a Cardiff-based organization that tended to anything alien on Earth."

"In Cardiff??" asked Yaz, exasperated, hardly able to believe it.

"Ah yeah, there was a space-time rift and loads of alien life-forms came through there for awhile," said the Doctor. "But it's generally okay now."

"Sure. Generally," agreed Jack.

"Yeah," said the Doctor.

"Yeah," said Jack.

They looked at each other hopefully.

"Okay, moving on then," said the Doctor. "We're here to investigate a signal emiting from this part of the planet. You?"

"Same," said Jack.

Brows furrowed, the two of them really took in their surroundings for the first time, noticing the number of other creatures also checking for signals. 

"Looks like lots of Time Agents answered this call," observed Jack. "I know some of them. There's Hebroon, and Mols. Oh, and that's Rexxa. Let's go see what's up."

The Doctor grabbed Yaz's hand and they followed Jack, with Grahman and Ryan staying behind to watch the scene.

When Jack, Yaz, and the Doctor returned, they informed the rest that everyone there seems to have responded to the signal. 

"Strong signal, this one," said the Doctor. "But do any of you notice something out of order?"

No one had.

She continued, "Bloke over there, by the corner hat rack. He's looking our way, and he has two small teeth implanted on his forehead. You might think they're moles, but no. I think they're not. He's a Stenza."

"Let's find out what he's doing here," said Jack forcefully. "On the count of three. You in, Doc?"

"In," she said.

"One, two, three!"

They both turned around abruptly and stampeded the Stenza spy. Jack pulled out a laser saber, pointing it as his throat. The bar turned silent, with all eyes on them.

"Tell us what we want to know, and you live," said Jack. "Stay quiet, and you die."

"He'll never hurt him," whispered the Doctor to Yaz. "He just likes to look tough."


	2. Relationship Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor gets relationhip advice from Jack.

Later, in the TARDIS ...

"I should've known," said the Doctor. "T'zim-Sha was sure to get free from his glass casing eventually. And that creature can nurse a grudge. He was bound to show up again."

"But we left him without a way to time travel," said Yaz, ever the practical one.

"True. But there are ways. Perhaps another group popped by sometime in the future, opened up his glass and he took their ship. I'm not the only one who travels through time. There aren't many of us, but vortex manipulators are quite popular again in the 32nd century."

Yaz said, "What we gonna do, Doctor?"

The Doctor gave Yaz a meaningful look. "We'll stop him. Again. And we'll keep stopping him until he no longer needs to be stopped."

Yaz gave a hardly-perceptible nod. She and the Doctor thought alike in that way. Certainly not in all ways--the Doctor was the fastest processor she'd ever met. Usually her trail of thinking came flowing out in words upon words, and Yaz liked listening to her logic, even if half the jargon only made some sense. But she was learning. She knew how to reverse the polarity now, after all.

Jack quipped, "Tim Shaw's *friend* told us he sent out the signal to draw the Doctor to Yaibrab2307, away from Earth. I think it was a surprise that so many other time travelers and agents responded to the call too. He felt overwhelmed, and knew he couldn't capture the Doctor on his own."

The Doctor continued Jack's thoughts, "So now we'll go to Earth, about your time, to see if we can find out what our old pal is up to. But, before we go, I need to make one minor repair to the TARDIS console. Some wiring came apart in that last astroid belt. Jack, maybe you can help me? I'd like to catch up a bit."

"Sure," said Jack.

"Maybe we should get some sleep while we can," said Graham. "And some food. Sounds like we'll be busy once we head to Earth."

"That's a right good plan, Graham," said the Doctor.

Graham and Ryan trotted back to their rooms, while Yaz lingered a moment.

"Doctor?"

"Yes, Yaz?"

"You think my family is safe?"

The Doctor looked at Yaz concerned, sighing deeply. "Yaz. I'll do everything in my power to keep your family safe. T'zim-Sha is clever and dangerous, but he's not as clever as me." She smiled at her own last remark, a twinkle in her eye. Yaz smiled back. She always felt better when the Doctor smiled.

"Right, I'll be along then," said Yaz. "Thanks."

As soon as they could hear Yaz was out of earshot, Jack looked at the Doctor. "Sooooooooooooo," he said, with his eyebrows raised and a knowing look.

"Oh, don't you start, Jack."

"Start what?"

"You know."

"Know what?," asked Jack, innocently.

The Doctor shook her head. "Here, hold these wires and strip the ends of the yellow and green ones while I just ..."

Sparks exploded from the TARDIS console.

"Okay," said the Doctor. "Hold on a second while I just ..."

Sparks flew again. Jack laughed.

"Look, Doctor, you don't have to tell me anything. But I knew you with Rose, and I knew you with Martha, and I know the difference in how you act with people you love. I know your angsty looks--you're not hiding them that well."

Pulling down her mad scientist goggles over her eyes and fixing her right suspender, the Doctor said, "Yeah, we'll that's just it. Look what happened to Rose."

"What did happen to Rose?" asked Jack.

"She got trapped in another dimension. And the best I could do was leave her with a mortal copy of myself. Lucky him. But me? I'm left to grieve and keep on keeping on. There's only so many times I can do that."

"Has there been anyone since Rose? You said it's been hundreds of years since I've seen you."

"Here and there, but only one who meant something to me," the Doctor said quietly.

Jack cocked an eyebrow. "Say more."

"River. I married River Song. I MARRIED. I got married. Me. Married." The Doctor stood up straight and pulled off her goggles to better look at Jack. "The only reason is that I met her after she already knew me. Our timestreams were different, sorta back to front, though it's possible I could still bump into her, I suppose. But I doubt it. But I could. But probably not. But maybe, I suppose. Nothing's impossible. But I don't want to hope."

"Doctor?"

"Sorry to ramble," she replied. "I didn't mean to love River, but I did. Fiercely. And now she's gone too."

"But what of your friend Yaz? I think she might like you," said Jack.

"Naw, not like that," said the Doctor, scrunching her nose. "Well, maybe like that. But she's sensible, Yaz is. She's not like Martha, losing her head over me. Yaz is ... practical. She'll think things through and carefully consider her options. She has a family--a wonderful family who loves her. And a good job. And she's beautiful, so it's not like she'll hurt for a certain kind of company."

"I noticed," winked Jack.

"Oh no, you don't, Jack Harkness. Leave her alone."

Jack put his hands up in a surrender pose. "No worries, Doc, I'm not gonna do anything." His grin suggested otherwise.

"It's just ..." the Doctor continued. " ... why would Yaz give up her life to be with me? Even if she were interested. I'm a 2,000-odd year old alien to her, living alone in a box. I'm socially awkward and, I'm told, a little impossible sometimes. She has family and friends. Sure, I can show her the stars, but one day she'll want to pop home to find a life of her own. Or, worse, something terrible will happen to her while she's traveling with me. I mean, actually, that's my worst fear. Terrible things happen to the people who travel with me. They become Cybermen, or wind up having their memories erased, or get banished back in time, only to die in a time and place they were never intended to inhabit."

The Doctor's eyes teared up. "Now I'm in a woman's body and a woman's body has more tear ducts. Did you know that? Literally, more tear ducts. Cry so much more, I do."

Jack said, gently this time, "I know, Doctor. Look, if anyone understands, it's me. I've lived a few thousand years now. I may even be older than you at this point in your timestream. I spent about nine centuries on Earth, since humans are pretty close to Boeshanites. Like you Timelords ... we're different, but the body plumbing and emotions are pretty close."

"Yeah, humans are great," agreed the Timelord. "Wish their lifespans were longer."

"Tell me about it," said Jack. "I've had many loves. And I've spent stretches of time without them. Not many stretches, mind you, but some. In my darkest moments. Some loves were purely ... let's say ... primal. But now and again, I spent a lifetime with a person. I watched them grow old, while I didn't gain a grey hair. It was terrible, at times. Heartbreaking. But those are the loves I wouldn't trade for any amount of time or any amount of money. It took a few centuries, but I've come to believe that love is always wise."

"Love is always wise." The Doctor had heard that before. No, said it before. She said it to herself just as she was changing into her current body. After spending hundreds of years in a dark mood, grisly and grim like the Scotish weather, her last words to herself were "Love is always wise."

Jack continued, "Love makes this enduring lifespan meaningful. I'd take the heartbreak, over and again, over spending all this time by myself."

"I'm not even sure if Yaz is attracted to women. Much less me. I've never been a woman--at least, not in a long, long time. I don't know how to navigate this, even if I open myself to it."

"Oh, she's attracted to women," said Jack. "No question there. Trust me. She could go either way, but I think she likes the ladies."

The Doctor looked relieved. "I'll think on it. Thanks, old friend."

"Any time. Glad you still need me."

"Oh, come off it," swatted the Doctor. "While you're here, I have a little piece of equipment I swapped off of our Stenza spy. Take a look at it and see what you think."


	3. Jack Talks to Yaz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After taking care of the Stenza, Jack talks to Yaz.

The Doctor watched Yaz as they approached T'zim-Sha. She looked confident, even if the Doctor knew she probably didn't feel it. Yaz was brave--braver than most humans she'd known. She didn't have to worry about Yaz; Yaz could take care of herself. Graham on the other hand ... well, he could take care of himself too, but in other ways. Doctor glanced at him and chuckled a little thinking of the pickle and cheese sandwich she knew he tucked in his jacket. She was pretty sure he had a stash of Cadbury chocolate bars tucked away in the TARDIS too. But enough of Graham's chocolates--she was coming up behind Yaz so they could enter the building together. T'Zim-Sha was, of course, in the Parliament building.

She and Jack had tracked traces of calcium Tim Shaw left trailing in his wake--tracked him all the way to the House of Commons. Now here they were. The Doctor could feel Yaz beside her, and she was pretty sure Yaz was quite aware of her too. They looked at each other and nodded. Time to go in.

_____________________________________________________________

"Do you think he's gone for good this time?" asked Ryan, taking deep breaths as the five of them regrouped outside the Palace of Westminster.

"Hope so," replied the Doctor, popping a piece of chewing gum in her mouth. "Mmmm, I like gum. Forgot I liked gum. Haven't liked gum in awhile. Grape goodness." She quickly worked up a large bubble and popped it, getting a bit of goo in her hair. Ryan and Yaz laughed at her.

"Oh yeah, that's why I don't like gum!" said the Doctor.

"Where'd you even find that?" asked Yaz.

"Oh, you know, saw a piece in the Prime Minister's desk and thought, 'why not?'".

Yaz and Ryan exchanged exasperated looks. But inside, Yaz thought how endearing the Doctor was ... so childlike and yet ... not. She'd just stood up to T'zim-Sha for a third time in only a few months (though it had been thousands of years to him). All the way back on planet Yaibrab2307 she'd thought to "borrow" all the equipment she'd found on the Stenza spy, tinkering with it and managing to connect it to not only Tim Shaw's teleporter, but to the teleportation devices of all the other Stenza warriors he'd brought with him. The nerve of that Tooth Alien--he'd actually thought he could set up a rival Stenza Empire in the Milky Way while the Doctor was distracted on Yaibrab2307. Not only was he cocky, but Tim Shaw was just plain dumb. Yaz had nothing for cocky, dumb dudes.

Her gaze was drawn elsewhere--toward the clever Timelord she assumed would never look at her twice. But she couldn't help but notice the Doctor, all the time. She was always aware of her presence in a room, always aware of where the Doctor was glancing, always aware of how she was standing. Yaz tried not to notice--not to care. But she couldn't help it. The Doctor's laugh lines and big eyes made her heart ache. She told herself she'd get over it. She told herself that she'd felt feelings like that before, and she'd feel them again toward someone else. She told herself that the Doctor was far too old. But still, she noticed her.

Which is why she fell behind the group as the five of them headed back toward the TARDIS--she wasn't sure she trusted herself not to grab the Doctor's hand.  Jack looked back at her and slowed his step as well.

He started a conversation. "You handled that like a pro back there, you know. Back when I led Torchwood, I would've hired you in a heartbeat. You remind me a bit of someone I used to know--Gwen was her name. She was strong. Kind of quiet, but always thinking."

Yaz replied, "I wish something like Torchwood still existed. I was bored out of my mind writing parking tickets and settling silly disputes."

"Well, you're traveling with the Doctor now. That's probably more interesting, eh?"

Yaz thought a moment. "Yeah, it's great. But I have a feeling there'll come a day when we can't go on, and then what?"

"Why would it have to end?", Jack asked.

"Well, every time we go off on some adventure, the Doctor brings us back to the same day we left, just a few minutes later. I mean, it's not like my family knows what I'm up to. At some point, if I spend years with the Doctor, they'll notice me getting older."

"I don't have that problem," said Jack with a strange look on his face. "This face never seems to age."

Yaz shrugged. "I mean, maybe I could tell my parents at that point. But, it's hard to know what the Doctor's thinking. I know she's had friends travel with her before, but she never says how long they stayed or what happened to them."

"It's not easy living a long time," Jack said gently. "I imagine she's had her share of heartbreak. And I imagine she'll want what you want for yourself. Would you want to stay with the Doctor forever?"

Yaz sighed, not sure how much to say to Jack. She settled on, "It's complicated."

"Yeah, I guess it probably is."

They walked in silence for a block.

Jack picked it back up, "Look, I don't usually say things this bluntly. Well, maybe I do. But I've known the Doctor a long time, and I suspect she might very much like you to stay with her."

"Why? Who am I in the scope of her life?" asked Yaz. "I'm a 25 year old earthling. I know she doesn't have family, but surely she has other friends who have known her longer and whose company she'd prefer."

"Friends, huh?", asked Jack. 

"Yeah, friends. What do you mean?"

"The Doctor has friends, but I'm not talking about friendship. I'm just saying, I think she might very much like you to stay with her."

Yaz looked at him with mild suspicion.

"I think she likes you," stated Jack.

"There's no way," said Yaz. "I'm not even sure she likes people--or any other creature, for that matter--*that* way."

"I've spent only a day with you both, and I'm telling you I think she likes you. I feel the chemistry, and I'm betting you do too. You just don't want to admit it could be there."

Yaz looked at the Doctor, walking with Ryan a half a block ahead. Her walk was attractive--large, confident strides in those boots, coat flying behind her, hands gesticulating wildly as she relayed some story. She could hear the Doctor's voice with its sing-songy Yorkshire accent, building to some climatic story arc.

Yaz replied to Jack thoughtfully, "It's not that I don't want to admit that it could be there. There are times ... when it does feel like there's something special between us. But I put the thought out of my mind because it seems, well ... absurd. I don't know what it means if it's true. What do I do with that? It scares me a little."

"She's probably just as scared as you. In fact, I have on good authority she is," he said with a knowning look.

"Wait, what?" said Yaz, surprised.

"You didn't hear that from me," said Jack.

They'd arrived back at the TARDIS. The Doctor turned around and said proudly, "Now that was a good day's work. Yaz, Graham, Ryan--you want to go have dinner in your flats while I give Jack a ride back to wherever he wants to go? I think tomorrow's Saturday your time, so you don't have to show up to work, do you? Meet me here around 9 o'clock?"

Graham looked at Ryan, "Yeah, I have a few things I'd like to pick up. A bill to pay. And it might be nice to sleep in my own bed for a night. Ryan?"

"Yeah, I'll come. Don't want to be there alone, but if you're there then we can push through our first night without me Nan," said Ryan.

"Yaz?" said the Doctor.

"Yeah, right. I should probably go check in with my fam. You sure you don't want to come? Jack, you could come too."

Jack looked at the Doctor and the Doctor looked at Jack. They were quiet, and no one could quite sort out what was and wasn't being said without so many words between them.

"Well, while you're sorting that out, we're gonna get going," said Graham. "See you bright and early in the morning."

"Bye Ryan, bye Graham," said Yaz. "Come for breakfast at my place if you like."

Yaz turned her attention back to Jack and the Doctor. Yaz spoke first. "Look, I need to pop into the TARDIS to grab my jacket anyway. You two decide and I don't care either way." She sounded nonchalant, but noticed the Doctor and Jack exchanging odd looks. She pulled in her breath and walked into the TARDIS.

Jack held his vortex manipulator up to the Doctor and said, "Look, Doc, I'm fine getting home on my own. Why don't you have a chat with Yaz? I spoke with her a bit while we walked back, and I think you two should communicate about what your feeling."

"You didn't."

Jack smiled conspiratorally, "I did," and winked at the Doctor. "Your move." Then he pressed some buttons on his vortex manipulator while the Doctor said, "I'll get you for this, Jack. Ooooo, I'll remember," while shaking her head exasperatedly.

"Thank me later," he said. Then Jack waved, winked again, and disappeared.

The Doctor turned and looked inside the TARDIS. "Here goes nothing," she thought as she stepped through the doors.


	4. DTR Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yaz and the Doc face their feelings. First kiss(es).

When the Doctor walked into the TARDIS, Yaz was still off fetching her coat. The Doctor walked over to the console and aimlessly fiddled with some switches.

"I don't have to do this now," she thought. "Just because Jack shoved me from behind doesn't mean anything has to happen. But, then, God only knows what Jack's said to Yaz. And then there might be this unspoken *thing* between her and me, and that would be weird. I don't want it to be weird. We're such good friends. It would be a crying shame to lose her friendship."

The Doctor's mind wandered back to her previous loves. Considering she'd lived 2,000-odd years, there weren't many. Chemistry, sexual encounters ... she'd had a few more of those, though still less than the average human would've in the same time span, she guessed--Elizabeth the First was good fun. As were Marilyn Monroe and Teddy Roosevelt. But loves? She could count them on her two hands. Was this connection with Yaz just another fleeting passion that would burn hot and flame out, or was it love? It scared her to admit that it might be the latter. It probably was the latter, on her end at least. She'd lived long enough to tell the difference. And it scared her, because love ... well, love hurts. And Jack saw it. Damn him. Bloody Jack could see through her in no time flat, Casanova that he was.

But, she thought, love's also the most gorgeous feeling--the emotion that made her feel most alive and relevant in the universe. She thought of River placing her hand on her arm and looking at her with those wickedly knowing eyes, and looking forward to what would happen between them in the bedroom later that night. Her hearts skipped a beat. It made her think of Yaz's big brown eyes and what it might be like to have them look at her that way, though she guessed Yaz would be softer than River, and a delightful lover in her own way. The Doctor remembered missed opportunities, and loves she treated poorly--like how hurt Sarah Jane had been when she dropped her off in Aberdeen, having never said goodbye. And Madame de Pompadour, and how their timestreams never synched up. Even those fleeting bits of her life were among the most closely held and cherished thoughts, and among her deepest regrets. They were the thoughts she didn't let herself think too often. She was still so young when she made such mistakes. Maybe her time exploring her internal darkness and coming to terms with herself had matured her. Does it really take 2,000 years for a lonely Timelord to realize the value of love? Perhaps so, at least for her.

And here was Yaz. Yaz, with her thick hair and steady nature. Her intense gaze and the joy she got from teasing the Doctor and playing like she's exasperated half the time. On the other side of that exapseration was a vulnerable human who looked at the world filled with hope and awe and love. The Doctor loved that about her.

Just then, Yaz came into the console room with her jacket draped over her arm.

"Where's Jack gone off to?" she asked.

The Doctor stood awkwardly by the console. "Oh, he's decided to skip the ride and used his vortex manipulator to travel back. Such a nasty way to travel, but he doesn't seem to mind."

"Oh," said Yaz, standing there looking at the Doctor. There was an awkward silence. "Well, then, what are you going to do? Do you want to come to my flat for dinner? You could stay there tonight or come back here, whatever you want."

"I'll just stay here. Got some things to do," said the Doctor.

There were a couple beats of silence, and Yaz said, "Okay. I guess I'll see you in the morning."

The Doctor looked down and nodded her head. Yaz thought she looked sad. Or pensive. Or something. "You alright?" she asked the Doctor.

"Yeah," the Timelord said. More silence. "I imagine you miss your family, don't ya Yaz? Do you ever think about just stayin'?"

"You mean, stop traveling with you?" said Yaz. "Yeah, I've thought about it," she said truthfully. "But ..."

"But?" said the Doctor, willing Yaz to go on.

"I'd miss you."

They locked eyes.

The Doctor replied gently, "Sometimes when people travel with me awhile, things happen to them. Like, bad things. And I'd be remiss if I didn't say I'm scared that one day something bad might happen to you. You have a beautiful family here who loves you. I'd give anything for a beautiful family like yours, Yaz. Seriously, I'd never choose traveling with me. A younger version of me would've chosen the travel, but the older I've become the more I understand the value of those kinds of connections. I don't want you to one day resent me for whisking you away from the people you love most."

"Do you want me to stop traveling with you? Is that what you're saying?" asked Yaz, clearly a bit hurt.

"No, that's not what I mean at all. I just mean, I'd understand if that's what you want. You know, before too much time's gone by and all."

"I think," said Yaz, "that if I travel with you for a really long time, I could ... yeah, I could ... wonder if I'm missing out on having a life on Earth. But that's only if it's just travel. I mean ... I dunno what I mean."

The Doctor waited for her to go on. There was a long, tension-filled silence between them.

"What I mean, is that I'd want more if I spent my life doing this."

"More?" askd the Doctor.

"Yeah, more."

Yaz looked deep into the Doctor's eyes, and the Doctor took a step toward her. Yaz's breath caught in her throat.

The Doctor prompted, "You mean more than just friendship?"

"Yes," said Yaz. "That's what I mean. You're like my best friend, but ..."

"I know," said the Doctor. "I feel it too."

"Are you scared?" asked Yaz. "Because Jack ... well, he didn't say definitely that you had feelings for me, but he said he thought you were scared."

"Yasmin Khan," the Doctor whispered, "I am a bit scared. But, then, love always scares me."

"Love?" said Yaz.

The Doctor looked pointedly at her, considering her words and what would inevitably unfold. "I was done for the moment I met you, Yaz." They slowly came toward each other, standing a few inches apart with the Doctor looking into Yaz's tear-filled eyes. 

Yaz's hand went to the Doctor's neck at the same time the Doctor's hand cupped Yaz'z face. The Doctor leaned her forehead against Yaz's forehead and they closed their eyes. "Stay forever?" she asked.

"Yes," said Yaz. "I'd stay forever."

The Doctor kissed her lips gently. Yaz kissed her back. The tender kisses were filled with desire on both their parts. And the delicate passion underlying all of the time they'd spent together intertwined as their bodies came closer and they explored each other's heads and necks, lips and cheeks. Occassionally their eyes would meet as they danced between lip-locking. The Doctor's hands found their way to Yaz's waist, and she pulled her closer while they continued kissing. Their attentive caresses gradually gained strength, as their eagerness increased.

Yaz ran her fingers through the Doctor's hair, pulling the back of her head closer as they grew more impassioned. The Doctor opened her mouth, and Yaz followed her lead. Their tongues searched each other's mouths, and the world around them faded into the background until Yaz's right foot slipped off the console step, knocking them both off-balance. The Doctor stopped Yaz from falling all the way to the ground and pulled her close to continue.

"Yaz," said the Doctor, between kisses. "Do you want to stay here tonight?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Yaz replied. The Doctor looked at her longingly, and the two of them made their way down the nearest TARDIS corridor toward what Yaz presumed was the Doctor's bedroom.


End file.
